1. Field
The present disclosure relates to a polymer electrolyte for a lithium battery and a lithium battery including the polymer electrolyte.
2. Description of the Related Art
An electrolyte of a lithium battery is a liquid electrolyte, in which a solid electrolyte salt is dissolved in a non-aqueous solvent, or a solid electrolyte, which is a polymer prepared by solidifying the liquid electrolyte.
A liquid electrolyte includes a volatile and inflammable non-aqueous electrolyte solution, which may leak if the battery becomes old or damaged. Thus, the liquid electrolyte is not reliable for a long-term use.
In contrast, a solid electrolyte resolves the problems of a liquid electrolyte. Particularly, a manufacturing process of the solid electrolyte may be simplified, as a result of which the solid electrolyte may become thinned, miniaturized, and light-weighted. However, a solubility of the electrolyte salt with respect to the non-aqueous solvent used together with the solid electrolyte is not sufficient. As a consequence, an amount of the added electrolyte salt is limited, and thus an ion conductivity of the electrolyte and a capacity of a battery may be reduced. A method of using an ionic liquid as an electrolyte salt is being suggested to resolve the problem.
However, since an ionic liquid is a liquid, a leakage problem of the liquid electrolyte may still persist. Therefore, there remains a need in a solid electrolyte prepared by solidifying an ionic liquid which would eliminate the leakage problem and thus provide high safety.